School networks
Networking is a key enterprise skill – having the confidence to meet new people, communicate your ideas effectively, seek out contacts who can help you, and making the most of the opportunities that come up will help you make your ideas happen.
If you want to be enterprising you need to get connected! It’s easy to start networking at school – you’re in the middle of a great network bursting with potential business partners, sponsors, investors and advisors! Read on for some ideas that can help get students and teachers networking.
Speednetworking
If you want to start networking, fast, why don’t you try speednetworking? It’s easy and isn’t nearly as scary as it sounds! It’s a great way to warm up a group, no matter what their age, and can be themed to encourage participants to swap ideas, experiences or reflections.
Speednetworking activities involve short, timed one-to-one conversations. When the whistle blows you have to move on and start a new conversation with a new person. It doesn’t sound like much fun, but energy and enthusiasm builds in the room as everyone starts talking. It can get incredibly noisy, but it's a great inclusive activity to warm everyone up.
Higham Lane School, a business and enterprise college in Nuneaton, ran speednetworking in tutor groups for most of their students during Enterprise Week 2006. They used the activity to generate ideas that are now being turned into reality: the school is setting up a range of student-run businesses!
Download our helpful tips for organising speednetworking events at school
The Make Your Mark Club
Networks are great for bringing together peers. Clubs and groups that meet regularly are networks. If you want to encourage enterprise at your school, why not set up a Make Your Mark Club? The Make Your Mark Club is a pilot network of young people who want to make ideas happen at school.
Download our simple start-up guide to the Make Your Mark Club, produced with Higham Lane School and supported by the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust. You might also want to download our poster to promote the Make Your Mark Club in your school.
News from the Clubs
In the summer a national networking day was held for the Make Your Mark Club. Marden School from Newcastle, Staindrop School from County Durham, Harts Hill School from Nuneaton, Park View School from Birmingham and the Matthew Arnold School from Surrey all came along to celebrate the first term of Make Your Mark Club activity.
Masterclasses on ethical enterprise and entrepreneurship were held, there was a graffiti wall for feedback and a Connector's Surgery to give clubs advice on making their ideas happen. We also heard from teenage entrepreneur Patrick Philpot who gave us an inspiring talk.
Pictures from the day can be seen here(Make Your Mark Club members only)
More networking ideas
Young Chamber
The Young Chamber is an exciting way to link student voice to business and enterprise activity in school. The Young Chamber brings together young people and businesses at a local level. It connects a school to its local chamber of commerce, and provides a structure to build a business network within school and with the local community.
Other local business networks
Networks are a great way to engage with local businesses and other organisations. To find out if there are any existing networks of young enterprising people in your area, why not check out our networks listing website: www.makeyourmarkconnect.org
This site is a growing compendium of networking activity across the country. All of the events listed on the site are public, so groups of students and/or teachers might like to go along for a slice of networking action. Otherwise you could try inviting the network into your school to meet young people and share ideas further. If you’d like advice or help finding an existing local network that you might build links to, just email catherine@makeyourmarkconnect.org
Teachers! Make Your Mark
Schools' Enterprise Education Network
To have an enterprising school, you need enterprising teachers – that means that teachers need to be networked too. The Schools’ Enterprise Education Network (S'EEN) is a network of all Business and Enterprise Colleges. Visit their new enterprise education portal for further information about how enterprise education is being embedded across whole schools, and how schools are providing professional development for each other through S’EEN: www.enterpriseinschools.org.uk/
Yahoo Group for teachers
The Make Your Mark Campaign has started a group for enterprising teachers too. If you’re involved in enterprise education and would like to join our informal forum, email catherine@makeyourmarkconnect.org for further information. We have a termly newsletter and a Yahoo group to connect all teachers who have an interest in enterprise to share news, ask questions and debate issues: www.yahoo.co.uk/groups/enterpriseeducation
National Enterprise Network
The National Enterprise Network (NEN) promotes enterprise by providing support, advice and training to those delivering enterprise education. The NEN believes that enterprise should be integral to educating the workforce of tomorrow and preparing young people for the world of work in our rapidly changing economy. The organisation provides bespoke training, national conferences and access to case studies as well as to classroom resources.
For further information, please contact the NEN directly:
Tel: 01274 385842
Email: info@nationalenteprisenetwork.co.uk
Web: www.nationalenteprisenetwork.co.uk
More networking help for schools
If you’d like further information or advice on networks in schools, please contact Catherine Ritman-Smith: catherine@makeyourmarkconnect.org